What we offer
GLOBALG.A.P. Benchmarking
GLOBALG.A.P. certification is widely trusted as a sourcing requirement for many major supply chains worldwide. Harmonizing the requirements of different farm assurance schemes cuts duplication and reduces both the complexity and the cost of certification.
Championing a “one auditor through the farm gate” principle
WHAT IS GLOBALG.A.P. BENCHMARKING?
GLOBALG.A.P. benchmarking is the process of recognizing alignment between different farm assurance schemes or checklists and their GLOBALG.A.P. equivalents. For producers, benchmarking enables them to achieve compliance with different standards and meet buyer requirements without undergoing separate audits for multiple standards that cover the same good agricultural practices (G.A.P.) requirements. For scheme or checklist owners, GLOBALG.A.P. benchmarking provides international recognition in a highly competitive market. As a key pillar of GLOBALG.A.P. activities, harmonization creates time- and money-saving opportunities, with the entire value chain profiting from the benefits.
How does benchmarking work?
Farm assurance scheme and checklist owners can apply for benchmarking to a GLOBALG.A.P. standard, a GLOBALG.A.P. add-on, or a combination of both. A successful benchmarking process results in either a “benchmarked scheme” or “benchmarked checklist”. The key difference is the choice of certification rules that are used.
Benchmarked scheme
This is a certification scheme using its own certification rules and own G.A.P. requirements. They are both benchmarked to the GLOBALG.A.P. normative documents and have been recognized by the GLOBALG.A.P. Secretariat as equivalent to the relevant GLOBALG.A.P. certification rules and product-specific G.A.P. requirements (principles and criteria).
Benchmarked checklist
This is a certification standard using its own G.A.P. requirements under the relevant GLOBALG.A.P. certification rules. The G.A.P. requirements are benchmarked to the relevant GLOBALG.A.P. standard and have been recognized by the GLOBALG.A.P. Secretariat as equivalent to the GLOBALG.A.P. G.A.P. requirements (product-specific principles and criteria).
GLOBALG.A.P. benchmarking options
For benchmarked schemes and checklists that are equivalent to a GLOBALG.A.P. add-on, the audit must be conducted together with the Integrated Farm Assurance (IFA) standard for the benchmarking to be valid.
There are many possible combinations. For example, a scheme or checklist owner may operate multiple schemes that (when combined) are equivalent to a GLOBALG.A.P. standard, or one scheme or checklist may be equivalent to a combination of GLOBALG.A.P. standards or add-ons.
Example 1: A scheme owner operates a scheme which is recognized as equivalent to a GLOBALG.A.P. standard combined with a GLOBALG.A.P. add-on.
Example 2: A scheme and checklist owner operates both checklist A (recognized as equivalent to a GLOBALG.A.P. standard) and checklist B (recognized as equivalent to a GLOBALG.A.P. add-on).
Both examples can be recognized as equivalent to both the GLOBALG.A.P. standard and the add-on (for example, IFA + GRASP).
What are the benefits of GLOBALG.A.P. benchmarking?
For producers:
Demonstrate compliance with different GLOBALG.A.P. standards through a single audit
Expand your market access and reach new buyers
For scheme or checklist owners:
Get international recognition through GLOBALG.A.P. benchmarking
Gain a competitive edge through equivalence with leading farm assurance systems
For retailers:
Monitor all supplier certificates in a single location via the GLOBALG.A.P. IT systems
Access more producers that meet your requirements through transparency on equivalent schemes and checklists
Questions about the benchmarking process? See our benchmarking FAQ.
Harmonized farm assurance systems
View benchmarked schemes and checklists
The following schemes and checklists have successfully completed the GLOBALG.A.P. benchmarking process.
Benchmarked schemes and checklists
Start the GLOBALG.A.P. benchmarking process today.
Apply for GLOBALG.A.P. benchmarking
Learn about the application process and schedule a meeting with our benchmarking expert today.
Five steps to benchmarking your scheme or checklist
Application forms vary according to the type of benchmarking required by the applicant scheme or checklist owner. Certification scheme or checklist owners should contact benchmarking@globalgap.org to receive the relevant application documents and the instructions for participation in a GLOBALG.A.P. training before the application process can begin. Alternatively, you can book an appointment with our benchmarking expert to discuss the process.
The completed application is then submitted to the GLOBALG.A.P. Secretariat for evaluation and the application fee is invoiced.
The GLOBALG.A.P. Secretariat conducts a document review, evaluating the integrity of the applicant’s scheme or checklist and checks its content against the GLOBALG.A.P. normative documents, including requirements addressing food safety, environmental sustainability, workers’ well-being, animal welfare, and more.
GLOBALG.A.P. Community Members are invited to participate in a peer review and contribute their insights.
The GLOBALG.A.P. Secretariat validates the applicant’s normative documents as well as the practical implementation of the scheme or checklist in the field. This is achieved through at least three on-site assessments and, if applicable, an audit of the quality management system.
A benchmarking committee, composed of independent experts from the producer/supplier and retail/food service sectors, is assembled for each benchmarking application. If the document review and on-site assessment stage is completed successfully, the benchmarking committee can recommend the recognition of the applicant’s scheme or checklist. If the benchmarking committee does not recommend recognition, changes are required before a new benchmarking application can be submitted.
The GLOBALG.A.P. Secretariat makes a final evaluation of the recommendation put forward by the benchmarking committee and, if there are no further remarks, grants benchmarking recognition. The successful applicant’s scheme or checklist is then publicly recognized on the GLOBALG.A.P. website and the scheme or checklist owner receives an official GLOBALG.A.P. seal to support their communications.
Start your benchmarking journey
Ready to begin the process and boost the global recognition of your scheme or checklist? Contact benchmarking@globalgap.org to receive the application documents.
Talk to us
Book an appointment with our benchmarking expert today!
Compared schemes
Certification schemes that have some similarities with a GLOBALG.A.P. counterpart but are not aiming for full benchmarked status can undergo an internal desk review process and achieve “compared” status.
FAQ
GLOBALG.A.P. benchmarking is the process of recognizing alignment between different farm assurance systems. This reduces complexity, administration, time, effort, and costs for stakeholders throughout the value chain by cutting duplication.
As a result, producers enjoy the benefits of certification to different schemes and/or checklists through a single audit process, the benchmarked scheme and checklist owners gain international recognition through equivalence with a leading solution from GLOBALG.A.P., and retailers can source with confidence from a greater pool of suppliers around the world.
Scheme and checklist owners can apply for benchmarking to any GLOBALG.A.P. standard, GLOBALG.A.P. add-on, or a combination of both. Our portfolio of standards and add-ons can help you identify harmonization opportunities.
Scheme and checklist owners must be a legal entity with liability insurance and follow ISO/IEC 17065 rules. They must be operational for a minimum of 12 months and issue certificates to at least 10 producers before applying for benchmarking. Scheme and checklist owners must have ownership and legal protection of their scheme and checklist documents. For more details on benchmarking requirements, see section 2 of the GLOBALG.A.P. benchmarking regulations.
Download the GLOBALG.A.P. benchmarking regulations and benchmarking fee table. If your scheme or checklist meets the necessary requirements, contact benchmarking@globalgap.org to receive the application documents or book an appointment with our benchmarking expert to discuss the process.
All certification scheme and checklist owners who successfully achieve GLOBALG.A.P. benchmarking recognition are provided with a GLOBALG.A.P. seal. This is updated yearly for as long as the benchmarking recognition remains in place. The green seal can be used to show your affiliation to the GLOBALG.A.P. brand and communicate your commitment to safer and more sustainable farming practices worldwide.
See the GLOBALG.A.P. trademarks use: policy and guidelines document for more information on how to use the seal.
Compared schemes are certification schemes that have undergone an internal desk review process by the GLOBALG.A.P. Secretariat and have been found to partially conform with a GLOBALG.A.P. counterpart. They differ from benchmarked schemes and checklists because they have not been through the full benchmarking process and are not equivalent to any GLOBALG.A.P. standard or add-on.
Compared schemes are not equivalent to their GLOBALG.A.P. counterparts. To avoid confusion in the supply chain, producers certified to those schemes are therefore not registered in the GLOBALG.A.P. IT systems.
Yes, if the scheme requirements that do not correspond with their GLOBALG.A.P. counterpart are upgraded to reach equivalence. The benchmarking manager for the compared scheme must complete an in-house trainer training before applying for the full benchmarking process and paying the relevant application and benchmarking fees. As with any benchmarking applicant, the process for compared schemes includes a document review, on-site assessments, and peer consultation before receiving a recommendation for recognition from the GLOBALG.A.P. Benchmarking Committee.
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Contact us
For questions about benchmarking or compared schemes, please contact us at benchmarking@globalgap.org.